“Look at you, Leo, so eager!” a burly man sneered with ill intent, “Afraid someone’s going to steal your job? Well, a delicate young lady certainly is more useful than a rough old man like you.”
The surrounding crowd burst into laughter.
Leo’s face flushed crimson then paled at the words and the jeering.
He retorted furiously, “You damn rookie, how dare you talk to me like that? I’ll blow you up with one shot from my ship, I swear!”
The big man instantly bristled.
On the sea, he might show some deference, but on land, would a broad-shouldered man truly fear this “pretty boy”?
“Screw you! I’ll show you what’s what!”
With that, the big man balled his fist and lunged at Leo.
Leo, already fuming from Sules, was itching for a fight to vent.
He returned the attack, fists flying.
The surrounding captains cheered as the two began to brawl.
This was a spectacle not to be missed! As captains, their lives were mostly spent at sea, and fights usually involved ships.
Hand-to-hand combat was a rare and fresh sight.
Sules, who had caused all this, merely watched their dogfight with cold eyes, silently retreating from the crowd.
Although some outwardly spoke on her behalf, she could clearly sense from their words that none of them were good people.
If they could both end up injured, all the better.
She had things to do and no time to waste on these base men.
***
Leaving the guild, Sules inquired about the location of the Saike Tavern.
It wasn’t far, about half an hour’s walk. It was still before noon, so she had plenty of time and didn’t need to rush.
As noon approached, Sules found a spot to sit and pulled out her black bread and fish slices.
Land restaurants were too expensive, a fact she’d learned when they stayed at the inn.
To save money, eating out was out of the question.
Human adaptability is limitless.
Sules, who once gagged at the dry black bread, now swallowed it in large mouthfuls without a change of expression.
After adapting to its taste, it was no longer an issue.
The salty fish slices added some flavor to the bread.
To be honest, when she first started her venture with her parents’ money, her living conditions were even worse.
She endured it then, so there was no reason she couldn’t now.
Still, improving her conditions was ideal.
Chewing her bread, she made up her mind.
Once she recruited all her crew, she would definitely improve their meals.
Though the ingredients—black bread and rough fish—couldn’t be changed, Sules, with her knowledge of thousands of years of Chinese culinary culture, had ways to prepare them better.
Next to where Sules was eating was a small tavern.
Its doors were tightly shut. Usually, only tired sailors sought refuge there in the evenings.
During the day, business was slow, so it naturally stayed closed.
Sules remembered taverns from “Return of Navigation”; they were places to recruit crew members.
Like in all games, once she accumulated enough resources, Sules could go to the tavern for a ten-pull or something similar.
Wait… resources?
Sules’s eyes widened suddenly, stunned speechless by the fleeting possibility that had just crossed her mind.
In the game, recruiting at the tavern required alcohol! Regular recruitment only needed beer, while advanced recruitment required wine.
Sules didn’t know about other requirements, but in this game world turned reality, she was certain that the better the quality of the alcohol, the better the crew members recruited.
Finally, a plan formed.
Sules was ecstatic, beginning to ponder what kind of alcohol to bring to the tavern.
Beer was definitely out; in this era, it was a drink only for commoners, far from becoming the mainstream beverage of later generations.
So, it certainly wouldn’t work.
Wine was a good option, but if Sules remembered correctly, in the game, low-level recruitment only yielded 1-3 star crew members, while advanced recruitment gave 3-5 stars.
Higher-level crew members could only be found by players exploring the map or upgrading themselves.
While advanced recruitment could indeed yield five-star crew members, the probability was very low.
If she brought wine, it might just be an entry ticket to potentially getting a five-star general, with success entirely dependent on luck.
However, if she could offer higher-grade alcohol, the chances of recruiting powerful individuals would significantly increase.
At the very least, she needed high-quality wine.
Otherwise, if she brought inferior quality, her chances of getting a powerful ally would be very slim.
With that thought, Sules made up her mind.
She quickly finished her black bread, stood up, and knocked on the tavern door.
Even with slow business, someone was always tending the bar.
Hearing the knock, a gruff-looking man with a black headscarf, wearing only a brown leather vest that showed off his eight-pack abs, opened the door.
“Who are you? What do you want?”
Sules was used to such attire.
In fact, most people she’d seen on the continent these past few days dressed similarly.
It was summer, after all, and ordinary folk couldn’t find ice to cool down, so they dressed lightly.
Also, being near the sea, Mercury’s culture was more open, without the strict gender segregation of ancient China, so most people dressed this way.
While Sules briefly admired the man’s eight-pack, she didn’t have any particular thoughts about it.
Mercury wasn’t like Earth; common people worked hard at sea all day, getting a lot of exercise.
Being in good shape was normal.
Though, an eight-pack was admittedly a bit much.
Sules took a small step back, creating some distance, and stated seriously, “I’m here to buy wine.”
Selling alcohol was the tavern’s main business.
Even if it wasn’t official hours, small establishments usually welcomed any business.
Hearing her, the man’s gruff face immediately broke into a smile.
“Buying wine, you’ve come to the right place! We have a full selection, never watered down, and guaranteed quality.”
Sules nodded noncommittally and followed him into the tavern.
The tavern was empty during the day, with artistic arrangements of wine bottles on the walls.
Several large wine barrels sat on the floor, emitting an alcoholic fragrance that Sules could smell from afar.
A circular bar section at the back was surrounded by chairs.
The owner gestured to the barrels.
“These are our own brews. Ask any sailor around, and they’ll rave about our tavern’s wine!”
Sules casually glanced around, ignoring his bragging, and directly asked, “How much for a bottle of wine?”
The man’s eyes lit up immediately upon hearing Sules ask for wine, a drink only the wealthy could afford.
Compared to a small tankard of beer for two copper shells, wine was not cheap.
This looked like a big sale!
His attitude grew much warmer.
He pulled out a dark brown glass bottle containing a dark liquid.
“This is wine imported from Grape Bay. Just eighty copper shells a bottle.”
Grape Bay was famous for its sea grapes, which were sweet and perfect for making wine.
When Sules was trading in the game, this route was her favorite; the profits were huge.
But… eighty copper shells!
Sules couldn’t help but cough, stunned by the price.
That was too much, wasn’t it?
The money she had left was barely enough for one bottle.
No, Sules narrowed her eyes slightly, eyeing the bottle suspiciously.
She believed a bottle of wine could be eighty copper shells, but was this particular bottle really worth that much?
Wines from Grape Bay usually went directly to nobles.
How would it end up in a small tavern like this?
Merchants were prone to deception, especially in an era without consumer protection laws.
With this thought, Sules narrowed her eyes and said meaningfully, “Don’t let my age fool you; I’ve traveled far and wide with my parents and seen a lot. Don’t try to deceive me with this.”
As the owner of a well-known venture capital firm, her greatest skill wasn’t investing, but uncovering scams.
The owner’s face hardened, and he growled, “What are you talking about? What am I deceiving you about? This is wine! Don’t believe me? I’ll open it for you to smell! Don’t you dare slander me just because you’re a captain!”
Sules didn’t believe him.
To her, a person’s guilt was evident when their voice grew louder.
Assuming there was indeed something wrong with the wine, and since he was willing to let her smell it, it definitely contained wine.
That only left the quality and brand of the wine in question.
Sules’s gaze fell on the bottle.
The brown bottle seemed fine, even bearing the mark of the Grape Bay winery.
Above it was the cork, and the cork… wait?
Sules’s eyebrow twitched, and a triumphant smile suddenly appeared on her face.
She glanced behind her; the door was wide open, so she wasn’t worried about not being able to leave later.
“Boss, the label on your cork doesn’t match the label on the bottle. You must have picked up a bottle from the Grape Bay winery and then put your own cork on it, right?”
As expected, the man’s face changed.
“No… I…”
Sules looked directly into the man’s eyes and slowly threatened, “You probably have more than just this one fake bottle, don’t you? So, tell me, if I were to spread this news right now, would your tavern’s reputation still be intact?”
The owner’s face darkened, his already tanned skin looking even darker.
“You dare? If you tell anyone, I’ll definitely retaliate!”
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